Tartan-wearing conventions among Scots

[Phil]

Also, the rapidly expanding global culture is largely American-driven, with American movies, TV shows, books and other mass media at the forefront. It is fast steamrolling indigenous cultural expression everywhere. Blue jeans instead of kilts in Scotland is only one example.

You are right, of course, with a few countries such as France managing to remain immune to a small degree. I think movies followed by TV shows are the main drivers of this influence with books less so.
But, of course, where did many of these cultural influences actually originate? Most, such as musical styles, would have been brought by the waves of immigrants and then modified over the years into the forms we see now.
This discussion, however, like so many of its ilk has migrated from one discussing Scottishness to one now discussing American culture. Understandable given the demographic make-up of the forum but not entirely relevant to the original subject.

[gilmore]

You are right, of course, with a few countries such as France managing to remain immune to a small degree. I think movies followed by TV shows are the main drivers of this influence with books less so.
But, of course, where did many of these cultural influences actually originate? Most, such as musical styles, would have been brought by the waves of immigrants and then modified over the years into the forms we see now.
This discussion, however, like so many of its ilk has migrated from one discussing Scottishness to one now discussing American culture. Understandable given the demographic make-up of the forum but not entirely relevant to the original subject.

Right, things are thrown into the melting pot and then often taken back to their point of origin as something better than what they were, since imported and manufactured is almost always thought of as better than domestic and homemade.

E.g., one sees Scots on the hoof in their native habitat at events like The Gathering or on the streets of Edinburgh posing with tourists with face painted blue yet cleanshaven, some sort of great kilt in earth tones, and swinging a claymore, just like Mel Gibson (an Australian born of American parents) did in Braveheart, an American-produced movie, purporting to represent William Wallace.

(From what I have seen and heard, the only countries likely to remain more or less uninfluenced by globalization of culture are police states like China and Burma, where the dissemination of information is tightly controlled.)

I guess my point is, are tartan wearing conventions among Scots (perhaps outside the western Highlands) being influenced by how people outside of Scotland imagine them to be?

Another point that I haven't noticed mentioned here is the Tartan Army. From what I understand probably more Scots wear kilts more often in that context than in any other, more than weddings, formal dinners, etc. in joyous and exuberant disregard for the finer points of highland dress.

[Colonel MacNeal]

I was thinking of posting something similar. We are blind to our own cultures, since we think of them as normative, especially in the case of American culture, which is huge and homogenous, with even little regional variation, compared to other countries.

Also, the rapidly expanding global culture is largely American-driven, with American movies, TV shows, books and other mass media at the forefront. It is fast steamrolling indigenous cultural expression everywhere. Blue jeans instead of kilts in Scotland is only one example. It seems everyone wants to like Americans, except perhaps for our habit of gratuitously invading smaller, weaker countries.

I was just in France, and was surprised by the amount of American content on French TV. If the French don't like it, then they shouldn't watch it. They shouldn't go see American films or listen to American music. If the French actually shunned American products in the marketplace, the marketplace would respond by offering more French content and products.

[gilmore]

I was just in France, and was surprised by the amount of American content on French TV. If the French don't like it, then they shouldn't watch it. They shouldn't go see American films or listen to American music. If the French actually shunned American products in the marketplace, the marketplace would respond by offering more French content and products.

That right! They can just take le voiture out of le parking and go off to EuroDisney pour le weekend.

[O'Callaghan]

E.g., one sees Scots on the hoof in their native habitat at events like The Gathering or on the streets of Edinburgh posing with tourists with face painted blue yet cleanshaven, some sort of great kilt in earth tones, and swinging a claymore, just like Mel Gibson (an Australian born of American parents) did in Braveheart, an American-produced movie, purporting to represent William Wallace.

As others have noted before, Mel Gibson is American and was only brought up in Australia, not even born there.

I have also heard that he is such a heavy smoker that he has to use a stunt double for anything physically active atall.

[MacMillan of Rathdown]

As others have noted before, Mel Gibson is American and was only brought up in Australia, not even born there.

I have also heard that he is such a heavy smoker that he has to use a stunt double for anything physically active atall.

That certainly wasn't the case when we were filming BRAVEHEART.

[O'Callaghan]

Yes, the Irish have a reputation here of being colorful and interesting party animals, and St Patrick's day parades are very festive events in many cities. Here in Atlanta on that day you see African Americans wearing "Kiss Me, I'm Irish" buttons and T shirts.

There are black people in Ireland. My favourite black Irishman was Phil Lynott, the lead singer of Thin Lizzy, RIP. His mother is white, though, and has outlived him. The name of the band was a pun, as pronounced with an Irish accent it become T'in Lizzie, i.e. a Model T Ford. The rest of the band were white. There aren't truly very many black people there, after all.

He used to tell a story that once while in New York for a gig he met a couple of cops in a bar, or a doughnut shop or somewhere, who told him they were 'Irish', really only meaning Irish American, and asked him where he was from, completely failing to pick up on the Dublin accent, and he answered that they wouldn't believe him if he told them!

The first St. Patrick's Day parade was held in Boston, Massachusetts, not anywhere in the auld sod atall.

[O'Callaghan]

That certainly wasn't the case when we were filming BRAVEHEART.

Maybe I heard wrong about that, then.

So, were you in the scene where they all lifted their kilts at the enemy?

[JRB]

...one sees Scots on the hoof in their native habitat at events like The Gathering or on the streets of Edinburgh posing with tourists with face painted blue yet cleanshaven, some sort of great kilt in earth tones, and swinging a claymore, just like Mel Gibson (an Australian born of American parents) did in Braveheart, an American-produced movie, purporting to represent William Wallace...

Even more amusing is the fact that the sword made famous by Mel Gibson in "Braveheart" wasn't even a claymore nor from the time of William Wallace. It was based on a 15/16th c. German Landesknecht sword.

[MacMillan of Rathdown]

Maybe I heard wrong about that, then.

So, were you in the scene where they all lifted their kilts at the enemy?

No, I worked mostly second unit or indoors. The film was written by an American, Randy Wallace, and was largely financed by Americans. Generally speaking the reason that there is no "real" British film industry is that it is almost impossible to raise money in the UK to make a movie. Because of that all the good scripts and talent make a bee-line to Hollywood.